I am honored to be with you this afternoon. I love the young adults of the Church. I don't know of any group in the Church that has more vitality, more enthusiasm, more potential and more opportunities for service than you do. Thank you for who you are, for all you do, and for how you make us feel when we are in your presence.
When Sister Dahlquist and I were growing up in the Boise 7th Ward, as teenagers we had a Mutual theme - much the same as we do today. One year, the theme was from Alma 34, verse 32: "For behold, this life is the time for men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors." I would like to use that scripture as my text - my theme this afternoon. Years after I memorized the scripture, I heard the message expressed in these words: "Five minutes before the dance is no time to learn the Samba."
I know how busy most of you are, with studies and work and Church service and families. And I hope that for a few minutes this afternoon, we can pause amidst the "things" and "events" of life, to see this as a marvelous time of preparation for all that will happen for the rest of your life - for it has been my experience that what is important to you now, will also determine your values throughout the remainder of your life. And so, in that vein, I mention six suggestions to help you make the most of this time of preparation.
Number 1: Remember who you are. In Primary, most of us learned the children's hymn, "I am a Child of God." I know of no better reminder of who we are, than the words of this little hymn:
I am a child of God
And He has sent me here,
Has given me an earthly home,
With parents kind and dear.[1]
If we will remember who we are and whose name we bear, it will have a profound impact on our lives, our decisions and the opportunities we have.
I am a father and a grandfather, and just as I love and am mindful of each of our five daughters and our 12 grandchildren, so our Heavenly Father is aware of each one of us. He has said, "For behold, this is my work and my glory - to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man."[2] There may be times when we forget, and feel discouraged and alone. If you get into one of those "down times" and wonder if there is anyone listening to your pleas, may I bear witness that God does live, that we are his children, that he hears and answers our prayers and that we are not alone.
One Sunday when I was a stake president I was at home - a fairly rare occurrence. That day our oldest daughter had a meltdown, told us we were the worst parents in the world, went downstairs to her room, slammed the door and turned her music up to at least 2,000 decibels. After several minutes of the entire house rattling, I went downstairs to tell her to turn her music down. As I approached her room, I heard the words of her music: "You're not alone." I stopped and thought, "If there is any message that should be blasted into the very soul of every Latter-day Saint - young or old - it is that one!" So I turned around and went back upstairs - without even mentioning to her that I had been there. In a few minutes, the music came down on its own. She came up and said, "I'm sorry." We said the same, and the Spirit returned to our home. It has been many years since that Sunday, but I have never forgotten the message: We are children of a kind Heavenly Father and are, indeed, not alone.
The scriptures are filled with reassurances of our divine being and the fact that we are not alone. One of those in Hebrews reads: "What is man, that thou art mindful of him?... Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands"[3]
I am a Child of God,
His Promises are sure,
Celestial Glory Shall be mine,
If I can but endure.[4]
He lives, we are His Children and we are not alone.
My second suggestion: take seriously your academic preparation. Now is, indeed, the time to prepare. When I was trying to decide on a career, my father said, "I don't care what you do - only that you do it well!" In the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 88, the Lord reveals to the Prophet Joseph these familiar words:
"Teach ye diligently and my grace shall attend you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand."[5]
That is the command or the "what" from the Lord. But the "why" of what He is commanding us, finally comes in verse 80: "That ye may be prepared in all things when I shall send you again to magnify the calling whereunto I have called you, and the mission with which I have commissioned you."[6] We are, indeed, a peculiar people, with a peculiarly wonderful and divine mission. Those things you learn here, whether of a spiritual or a temporal nature, will prepare you to better serve your family and the kingdom - wherever in the world the Lord sends you. Tom Brokaw was once quoted as saying: "In this country it's easy to make a living, but it's tough to make a difference." Your experiences here at BYU-Idaho will help you not only make a living, but make a difference as well.
In addition to the substance of your major studies, learn to read critically, to write clearly, and to speak persuasively. Take a foreign language. If I can, at my young age, be learning Russian and Swedish, you can learn a foreign language, too. Take seriously not only the studies of your major, but also your general education classes. A friend of mine who worked in administration at a large university said, "That which you learn in your major helps give you a living; that which you learn in your general education classes helps give you a life." That has been my experience as well.
Third, don't put the things of eternity on the shelf while you are here at school, including serving in the kingdom and growing spiritually. This is not only a time for academic growth, but spiritual growth and setting spiritual patterns as well. And if ever there was a time when you need the Spirit of the Lord in your lives, it is now! I offer three suggestions when I talk about the "things of eternity." First, continue your own personal spiritual growth through daily prayer, scripture study, and attending the temple. Second, respond to opportunities to serve in the Church. You might not have the time to serve that you will have at later stages in your life, but look for opportunities to serve in formal callings and otherwise. I once had a bishop who knew he should do genealogy and family history work, but just didn't have a lot of time, with employment, family, and being a bishop of a very large ward. But he decided that every Fast Sunday, he would go to the Family History Library and work as hard as he could for an hour each month. At the end of that hour, he would pack up his briefcase, knowing that he had at least done something.
The third area in dealing with things of eternity is to strengthen home and family. If you are already married, use this as a time to nurture your marriage, to set patterns of family scripture study, family prayer, family home evening and father's interviews. If you are engaged, I offer my congratulations. If you are engaged, but don't yet have a temple date - get with it and set one! And if you are just not there yet, can I encourage you to seek diligently - and ye shall find - especially you young men! As I served as a Young Single Adult branch president for 7 ½ years, I used to detest the term "hanging out." I would tell the brethren in the elders quorum that they could "spend quality time" in groups during the week, but on the weekend, I wanted them out on a date holding hands with one girl. If you are concerned with rejection or fearful to take the first step, have faith! Fear didn't hold you back in the mission field because you were on the Lord's errand and He gave you strength. In all you do, prepare to be good husbands and fathers. Live the charge of the Hymn:
Rise up, O men of God,
Have done with lesser things, [including incessant computer games]
Give heart and soul and mind and strength,
To serve the King of Kings.[7]
He will bless you in this part of your life as well. I pray for you in this great endeavor.
And for you sisters who would give anything to be married and have a family, I honor you for who you are, and for the miraculous work you do - in developing your own talents and touching the lives of those around you. As a father of five daughters, I am the product of good women, just like you - a wonderful, angel mother; a faithful and loving wife; and five beautiful daughters; and six granddaughters! Thank you, each of you, for all you do!
The fourth suggestion I have in your time of preparation is to live the standards in the For The Strength of Youth brochure. I carry it with me wherever I go, and suggest that you do the same. These standards are not just for teenagers. When you have a moment of waiting, pull it out, read it and re-commit to living its standards. A number of years ago, a young woman just your age was out on a date with a young man. They had been out several times before. This time they went for a ride - west of town. As they rode, it got darker and darker, until it was completely dark. It was at this time as they were on a deserted country road about seven miles from town that the young man pulled over to the side of the road, turned off the engine, took off his glasses, and moved over to the side of the car where this young woman sat. At that point she said, "Stop! I am not that kind of girl. Take me home - now - or I will walk." She later told me that he moved back over to the driver's seat, started the engine, turned on the lights, pealed out onto the road and drove 90 miles an hour down that little country road. "I thought we were going to die," she said. They arrived at her apartment on campus. He slammed on the brakes, she got out and he sped off - and she never saw him again.
I have often thought about the courage that must have taken for her on that lonely, dark country road - where none would have known what happened - none but she and that young man - and a kind Heavenly Father. I am grateful for that simple decision made on that dark country road so many years ago - for it made all the difference - for that young woman became the mother of our five daughters. And it was natural for me, when I took each of them in my arms to give them a name and a blessing, to bless them that when they struggled, they needed only to look to the example of their mother. Four - live the standards in the For the Strength of Youth brochure.
My fifth suggestion: learn to control your thoughts. There is a war going on that is normally not covered by any of the major media - a war not of guns and tanks, but a war for the lives and souls of our youth - including you, the young adults of the Church! And it begins in the minds of today's young members of the Church. In his final talk recorded in the book of Mosiah, King Benjamin taught the saints in his day:
"And finally, I cannot tell you all the things whereby ye may commit sin; for there are divers ways and means, even so many that I cannot number them. But this much I can tell you, that if ye do not watch yourselves, and your thoughts, and your words, and your deeds, and observe the commandments of God, and continue in the faith... even until the end of your lives, ye must perish. And now, O man, remember, and perish not."[8]
This war for the minds of Latter-day Saints becomes even more intense with the introduction of the electronic media - television, DVDs, the internet, iPhones, Kindles, Droids, iPads, and the list goes on and on. Now, my message to you is not to give up the media and move to Stites, Worley, or Wardner, Idaho and assume you'll run away from it all. There have been some who have done that, but, if you move to a place like that for that reason, as a friend of mine used to say, "you'd better have one of the Three Nephites on your side when you make that decision." Jonah tried to run and it didn't work, and it won't with you or with me.
No, the key is to learn responsible use of each medium and to learn how to control your thoughts. May I offer two simple suggestions: first, get rid of any visual image that would draw your mind and your thoughts away from that which is good and true and right. I am not suggesting that you do away with all pictures in your room or home or iPhone or your computer screensaver that don't have to deal with the Savior and temples. Rather, I am suggesting that you pray for the Spirit and then ask yourself, "Does that picture or poster lift, inspire or motivate me? Or does it drag me down?" If you have to remove some wall hangings, you might replace them with a picture of the temple or good art. And each of us will be different. In my study I have a picture of a banjo. To me, as a banjo player, that is inspiring. For most others... well, I'll just leave it at that.
You might even consider putting together your own personal Hall of Heroes, including a picture of each hero and a small paragraph of why he or she is a role model for you. Surround yourselves with that which lifts and inspires you to be your better self. As a young man, I loved to listen to Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass - all instrumental music. However, one album was released entitled "Whipped Cream." The music was fine, but the album cover showed a young woman completely covered in whipped cream and not much else. As a young teenage boy, for some reason, that image didn't seem like something that would inspire so I covered it with a picture of an antique auto - and there it has stayed now for some 45 years. Surround yourselves with uplifting graphic reminders of who you are and what inspires you!
I have also learned that it is possible to control our thoughts by that which we memorize or take into our minds. A wise man once said:
"If one wishes to improve his speech and be an inspiration to his friends, let him read the scriptures, poetry and other good literature with such concentration as to impress upon his memory the best of what he reads. To store in one's memory select passages and to add daily to that store is to live constantly in the presence of the best. That which we value enough to memorize becomes part of us."[9]
Years ago, Sister Dahlquist returned excitedly from a BYU Education Week class and suggested that we start learning poetry as a family. So as part of our daily family seminary, we began to include a poetry memorization component. The first poem that we memorized was:
Keep a poem in your pocket, and a picture in your head,
And you'll never be lonely, At night when you're in bed.[10]
We learned a number of others over the years. And if those five little girls were here with me today, though they are grown, they would remember most of them. What is important is not that they are always prepared with a talk or an inspirational thought - which they are, but that when they are discouraged or tempted, they have filled their minds with that which is good and right and positive and uplifting - and it will carry them through some pretty difficult times. When I was in Berlin several years ago, I toured Hohenschönhausen, a Russian prison. It was a horrible and very dark experience. When we left the prison, I asked our guide, Herr Eberhart Zaun, how he ever survived. He said, "When things got really bad, I recited portions of Shakespeare plays that I had memorized as a youth." I asked, "What about those who had not memorized uplifting quotes as a youth?" He replied, "They soon lost hope and died." I am convinced that being able to control our thoughts by that which we treasure up in our minds is, indeed, a lifesaving work.
Now, finally, in the midst of your preparation, remember, that this is also a time for serving and giving and sharing and ministering to those in need. I hope you learn early that service is not just a project but a way of life! And service in the Kingdom is more than just fulfilling your calling with diligence. It is responding to a person in need now! It is fulfilling a need now. I recall the story of President Kimball's visit to a stake conference. They had taken a break from their long stake presidency meetings with Elder Kimball. One of the members of the stake presidency went into the men's restroom and to his horror, found that someone had pulled all the paper towels out of the dispenser and had then tossed them all over the floor - probably an energetic 4 year old! He immediately started out to find someone to clean up the mess.
As he was leaving the restroom, he passed President Kimball, just coming in to the restroom. Without a word, President Kimball stooped down and began to pick up the papers and place them into the wastebasket. We serve because there is a need, and we serve now. We open a door, give a kind word, deliver a loaf of bread, pick up a piece of paper on the lawn on campus, straighten a rug, or even simply smile at someone in need, just because of a perceived need. I learned that from a father who always had the worst looking front bumper in the state of Idaho because he was always giving some car along the highway a push. I am grateful for his quiet example of spontaneous service.
When I was a stake president, there was a young man by the name of Jim Sirrine in our stake. As I recall, Jim was not particularly talented, not particularly athletic or gifted, but, like the rest of us, a normal garden-variety member of the Church. One evening, his ward youth decided to do a food drive for the homeless. They met at the Church, had a prayer, and then sent each youth, with a little wagon, out to collect cans of food from those who lived within the ward boundaries. They were to return in 45 minutes and the one with the most cans of food in their wagon would win a prize. They all left for their stations and returned at the appointed time. Jim returned a few minutes late but with an empty wagon. The other youth chided him, and asked him if he has gone to get a drink at the local 7-Eleven. Jim just laughed and went over and quietly sat down. The attention of the youth soon turned to the many cans of food, and seeing who was the winner with the most cans collected.
As they counted the cans, a member of the bishopric, Brother Whitehead, went over and sat down next to Jim. He quietly said, "Jim, I have a feeling that something happened out there tonight that you didn't tell us about." Jim explained that he was about ready to return with his wagon full of cans, when he decided to go to one more home. He rang the bell and a lady came to the door. He explained to her what they were doing and asked if she would be willing to contribute. She said it was a wonderful project, and said she would be right back. In a moment, she returned with two cans of food. Jim thanked her, put the cans in his wagon, bade goodbye and began down the walk.
Jim then said, "As I got half-way to the street, I had the strangest feeling, and I turned around and returned to the door. Again I rang the bell. When she answered, I said, 'Ma'am, I don't know you and you don't know me, but as I was leaving here, I had the strangest feeling that you need this food more than where I am taking it. And so I have decided to leave it here with you.'" As he said that, she burst into tears and just sobbed. Well, what does a teenage boy do when a grown woman begins to cry? What does a grown man do when a grown woman starts to cry? So he just began to unload the cans on her porch and left. As he finished the story, Jim said, "Brother Whitehead, I may never know why she needed that food so badly, but I know that it was the right thing to do."
As I heard that story, I thought, what a wonderful thing that Jim was prepared to hear the voice of the Holy Ghost speak to his soul as it invited to spontaneously serve. Jim knew who he was, and because he did, he was a pure vessel in the hands of the Lord to bless the lives of that woman and her family. I love the poem by Myra Brooks Welch:
'Twas battered and scarred,
And the auctioneer thought it scarcely worth his while
To waste his time on the old violin,
But he held it up with a smile.
"What am I bid, good people," he cried,
"Who'll start the bidding for me?"
A dollar, a dollar, and who'll make it two?
Two dollars and who'll make it three?
Three dollars once, three dollars twice,
And going and gone, but no.
From the room, far back, a grey-haired man
Came forward and picked up the bow.
And wiping the dust from the old violin,
And tightening the loose strings,
He played a melody pure and sweet
As sweet as the angel sings.
The music ceased, and the auctioneer
In a voice that was quiet and low,
Said, "What am I bid for the old violin?"
And he held it up with the bow.
A thousand, a thousand, and who'll make it two?
Two thousand and who'll make it three?
Three thousand once, three thousand twice,
And going and gone," said he.
The people cheered, but some of them cried,
"We do not quite understand
What changed its worth?" Swift came the reply:
The touch of the Master's hand.
And many a man with life out of tune
And battered and scarred by sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd
Much like the old violin.
A mess of pottage, a glass of wine,
A game, and he travels on.
He's going once, he's going twice,
He's going and almost gone.
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd
Can't quite understand
The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought
By the touch of the Master's hand.
You and I are the ones that are the Master's hands, because most of the miracles, unlike that which happened with Paul and unlike that which happened with Alma the Younger, generally-happen through others, through you and through me - if we are prepared.
God bless you and God bless me that we might all be prepared, that we might rise up and be true Latter-day Saints, that we might strengthen this great world, that we might use this time to strengthen ourselves that we might be prepared to accomplish our individual missions here on the earth. I testify to you that God lives. This is His work. He knows you by name, He hears your prayers and He will answer them in His own time, often in unexpected moments as we are about His business. That I know, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Notes
[1] "I Am a Child of God," Children's Songbook, 2-3.
[2] Moses 1:39
[3] Hebrews 2:6-7
[4] "I Am a Child of God," Children's Songbook, 2-3
[5] Doctrine and Covenants 88:78
[6] Doctrine and Covenants 88:80
[7] "Rise Up, O Men of God," Hymns, 324
[8] Mosiah 4:29-30
[9] Anonymous
[10] Beatrice Schenk de Regniers